On the Need to Write and Augustine (!)

Bits of motivation, indeed motivating bits of sage advice, can come from the strangest places.

My first, and then perhaps lasting, impressions of Augustine (e.g. Bishop of Hippo and Mr. Roman Catholicism himself) is that the guy IS the reason Christianity is generally fucked up about sex. That I first read Augustine in a university course on international and strategic relations is pointed out to assure you I know little about either Augustine or the Church. I'm guessing it was St. Augie's original affinity for Plato that put him on my political science reading list, but the fact is the guy, to my own conclusion, is THE original "born again" (refuting as just plain bad all that he'd done before) has always left me fascinated.

Anyway, was reading a bit about some of his first writings, specifically Soliloquies, in which appears this dialogue between the author, Augustine, and Reason:

"Someone, let us call him Reason, said to me: 'Suppose you have discovered a truth. To whom will you entrust it so that you may proceed to further thought?' Augustine: 'To my memory, I suppose." Reason: 'Can your memory realy preserve all your thoughts?' Augustine: 'That would be difficult, actually impossible.' Reason: 'Then you must write it down.'"